During the servicing of vehicles, for example, cars or trucks, it is frequently necessary to raise, lift, or jack the vehicle or one end of the vehicle above a ground or support surface in order to gain access to a particular part or component or to remove a tire and rim from the hub assembly. For instance, removal of the tire and rim is required to perform repairs or maintenance to the components of the hub assembly, such as the brakes, the ball bearings, and the like, to patch a hole in the tire (and tire tube), or to replace the tire or rim. In any event, the tire and rim must typically be removed from the hub assembly by removing the lug nuts from the studs of the hub assembly, slightly lifting the tire and rim above the studs so as not to strip or damage the screw threads of the studs while separating the tire and rim from the hub, and transporting the tire and rim to a location that does not interfere with the servicing of either the hub assembly or the tire and rim. Conversely, a tire and rim being attached to a hub assembly requires the tire and rim to be lifted to the hub assembly while simultaneously aligning the apertures of the wheel rim with the studs of the hub assembly and, once attaining such alignment, mounting the tire and rim onto the hub assembly, ensuring that the studs are received within the rim apertures without damaging the screw threads of the studs.
As a typical tire and rim together may possess considerable weight (for example, for truck tires typically in excess of one hundred pounds), removal of the tire and rim from the hub assembly is a difficult task for maintenance and service personnel to accomplish, as care must be exercised to prevent damage to any component of the hub assembly or injury to individual maintenance and service personnel. Furthermore, such a task, if performed improperly or in haste by such personnel, may result in bodily injury, such as pulled or strained muscles and pinched, mangled, or broken fingers or hands.
The subject of the instant invention provides a manually operated tire servicing device, for example, a tire lifting device, that can be positioned under a tire with rim before said tire and rim are attached to a hub assembly in order to facilitate raising of said tire and rim to the level of the hub assembly and aligning apertures of the rim with lug nut studs of the hub assembly and to facilitate removal of said tire and rim, from the hub assembly.